(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the collection, redundant storage and retrieval of digitized images which are produced by diverse apparatus having different data formats and particularly to the management of data produced by a plurality of different non-destructive testing modalities. More specifically, this invention is directed to apparatus for the transformation and subsequent transmission, reliable storage at a single location and selective retrieval of the results of plural, diverse test procedures and especially to an information management system for handling a large volume of digitized images such as produced by diverse types of medical diagnostic apparatus. Accordingly, the general objects of the present invention are to provide novel and improved methods and apparatus of such character.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
While not limited thereto in its utility, the present invention is particularly well-suited to use in the field of medical imaging. The radiology department of a well-equipped hospital will have a number of imaging modalities which generate digital images. These modalities include computerized tomography, ultrasound, nuclear medicine, digital subtraction angiography, digital radiography and nuclear magnetic resonance. The test apparatus, i.e., the image acquisition devices, which function in accordance with these various modalities are typically stand-alone devices. These devices are capable of generating images from digitized test data and have a comparatively small volume of local storage. These devices are also usually designed for the acquisition and subsequent analysis of a specific type of data and the images produced are optimized for a particular medical procedure. Consequently, these non-destructive testing devices generate digital images with different matrix sizes and degrees of resolution. The memory capacity required to store an image provided by one type of device may be totally inadequate to store an image provided by a different type of device and thus, if simultaneous study of the results of different tests is desired, hard copies of the image data must be provided. These different data acquisition devices cannot communicate with one another nor can they process each others data. Accordingly, at the present time archival storage is almost entirely device and manufacturer dependent, i.e., there is no common data base. This, in turn, results in inefficient storage and poor correlation of diagnostic data.